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Two students were airlifted to a burn center with life-threatening injuries Friday morning after a fire broke out in chemistry class at W. T. Woodson High School in Fairfax, Virginia. (NBC 4 Washington) more >

Two students were airlifted to a burn center with life-threatening injuries Friday morning after a fire broke out in chemistry class at a Northern Virginia high school.

Three other students and a teacher sustained non-life-threatening in the fire, which occurred around 9:40 a.m. at W. T. Woodson High School in Fairfax, Virginia, News4, a local NBC News affiliate, reported. The three students were taken to Inova Fairfax hospital, while the teacher stayed behind to talk to authorities, the station said. The other two students were airlifted to MedStar Washington Hospital Center’s burn unit via Medevac.

The school was evacuated after the fire, which was contained to one room, officials said. Fire crews remain on the scene, and a hazmat team is evaluating the school, NBC reported. Fire officials and police are investigating the cause of the blaze.

“It was a science laboratory, a classroom,” Dan Schmidt of Fairfax County Fire told News4. “We don’t know the particulars on what happened. It was a small fire. Firefighters, along with the sprinkler system, put out the fire.”

No one has been cleared to re-enter the building yet, NBC reported. Helicopter footage showed evacuated students gathering near the football field and tennis courts outside.

“Anything to take precautionary measures is, I think, the recommended route when it comes to the safety of children and students,” Mr. Schmidt said.